At Colegio Internacional San Cristóbal, the three years of second-cycle Early Years and the six years of Primary follow the Primary Years Programme (PYP) of the International Baccalaureate. Pupils learn through inquiry: they investigate real questions and connect subjects, while following the full official Valencian curriculum.
Inquiry
Asking, investigating and reflecting
Multilingual project
English, Valencian and French in class
IB continuum
From the PYP to the MYP and the Diploma
The PYP is the International Baccalaureate (IB) programme for children aged 3 to 12. It does not replace the official curriculum: it is a framework that shapes how teaching and learning happen.
At San Cristóbal, the content of the Valencian curriculum is taught through units of inquiry: each unit is built around a big idea and connects language, maths, science, social studies, art and physical education. This way, what pupils learn makes sense to them, and they remember it.
The aim is not just to know more, but to learn how to think: asking good questions, looking for answers, working with others and explaining what they have discovered.
An evaluated programme: the school is authorised by the International Baccalaureate Organization, which regularly reviews how the programme is implemented at the school.
Unit of inquiryLearning through inquiry means pupils are not handed ready-made answers: they build them. The teacher designs the unit, sets challenges and guides the process.
Each unit starts from a central idea and from the pupils’ own questions.
They observe, look for information, test and compare ideas, with the teacher as a guide.
What they learn becomes something concrete: a model, an experiment, a proposal for their community.
They present their work, explain how they did it and consider what they have learnt and what they would improve.
Each year’s units of inquiry are organised around six transdisciplinary themes, shared by every PYP school in the world.
Who we are
Identity, health, relationships and what makes us human.
Where we are in place and time
History, places, journeys and discoveries.
How we express ourselves
Ideas, feelings, culture and art.
How the world works
Nature, science and technology.
How we organize ourselves
Communities, systems and decision-making.
Sharing the planet
Resources, the environment and living together.
The approach stays the same for nine years. What changes is how much independence is expected of each pupil.
Early Years · second cycle · ages 3 to 5
Children’s natural curiosity is the starting point. Play, observation and hands-on materials are their first ways of investigating.
Primary Education · Years 1 to 6 · ages 6 to 12
Units of inquiry become deeper. Pupils learn to organise information, build arguments and present their work in public.
In their final year, pupils carry out their own team inquiry into a topic that matters to them and present it to the school community. It marks the end of the programme and the bridge to Secondary with the MYP.
Each language has a clear role in everyday school life. English is the priority language: it carries a lot of weight from Early Years and is taught intensively, with particular attention to spoken communication.
Qualified teachers, conversation classes and individual progress monitoring. We also prepare pupils for the official Cambridge English exams (in Spanish).
Discover our multilingual projectAll IB programmes share the same learner profile. In the PYP it becomes everyday classroom language: children recognise it, use it to reflect on their work and take it with them to the MYP and the Diploma.
Inquirers
Curious and able to investigate.
Knowledgeable
Understand ideas across many areas of knowledge.
Thinkers
Analyse, reason and make sound decisions.
Communicators
Express themselves confidently in more than one language.
Principled
Act with honesty and a sense of fairness.
Open-minded
Value other cultures and points of view.
Caring
Show empathy and help others.
Risk-takers
Face new challenges with confidence.
Balanced
Look after their physical, mental and emotional wellbeing.
Reflective
Think about what they learn and how to improve.
Active, cooperative classrooms and a team that knows every pupil.
Pupils learn to coordinate, take on a role, listen to other opinions and resolve disagreements.
Digital devices and computational thinking that serve learning, rather than being an end in themselves.
Recognising, expressing and managing emotions is part of the timetable and of tutoring.
Find out more →Individual tutoring and the Counselling Department help us understand each child’s pace and needs.
Counselling Department →At first it was hard for us to understand how they worked with the PYP, because it wasn’t the way we had studied. Over time we have seen that our son asks more questions, connects ideas better and comes home talking about what he has investigated in class.
Family of a Year 3 Primary pupil
Colegio Internacional San Cristóbal
For us it has been important to feel that the school knows our daughter. It hasn’t always been easy, but whenever she has needed support we have found closeness, understanding and follow-up. That gives us great peace of mind as a family.
Family of a Year 5 Primary pupil
Colegio Internacional San Cristóbal
The best way to understand how our pupils learn is to see it. Book a guided visit or call us on +34 964 228 758.
SCHOOL
Tel. +34 964 228 758
Calle San Jorge del Maestrazgo, 2
12003 Castellón de la Plana
NURSERY SCHOOL
Tel. +34 964 228 758
Calle Moncófar,6
12003 Castellón de la Plana
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